Dr. S. Suthakaran

Dr. S. Suthakaran is a Senior Lecturer in Geography at the Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts and Culture, Eastern University, Sri Lanka. He holds a Ph.D. in Environmental Studies from the University of Tsukuba, Japan, where his doctoral research focused on assessing flood impacts on rice production and strengthening farmers’ resilience in Sri Lanka. His academic and professional expertise spans Geography, Geo-Informatics, GIS, Remote Sensing, Disaster Risk Reduction, climate resilience, open geospatial technologies, community mapping, and spatial data management.

Dr. Suthakaran has extensive experience in international research and development collaborations, having contributed to programmes and projects associated with the World Bank, UNDP, UNOPS, UNV, UN ILO, and other international development partners. His international academic engagement includes research and professional collaborations in Japan, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Germany, Kenya, Nepal, Bangladesh, Malawi, and other countries. These collaborations have strengthened his contribution to international research networks in geospatial science, disaster management, climate change, and sustainable development.

He has published research in internationally recognized peer-reviewed journals and academic publications, including publications by Springer Nature,  John Wiley and MDPI, with research focusing on flood risk, rice production, geospatial technology, OpenStreetMap, machine learning, climate activism, and sustainable development. His research demonstrates an interdisciplinary approach that connects geographical research with advanced geospatial technologies to address real-world environmental and community challenges.

In addition to his research and teaching, Dr. Suthakaran actively contributes to the development of open geospatial data through OpenStreetMap and serves as Faculty Advisor of the YouthMappers Chapter at Eastern University, Sri Lanka, supporting student capacity building, international collaboration, and community-based mapping initiatives. His work aims to bridge academic research, international partnerships, geospatial innovation, and community engagement to promote disaster resilience, environmental sustainability, and evidence-based development planning.

• Google Scholar
  https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=VRM4ZmAAAAAJ

1. Suthakaran, S., & Matsui, K. (2025). Assessing the Impact of Past Flood on Rice Production in Batticaloa District, Sri Lanka. Geosciences, 15(6), 218. https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences15060218
2. Iyoob, A. L., Zahir, I. L. M., Suthakaran, S., & Lewai, F. A. M. (2026). Machine learning-based urban nighttime light intensity analysis in Sri Lanka using VIIRS images. In Innovations in Computational Intelligence and Computer Vision: Proceedings of ICICV 2025, Vol. 1, pp. 51–67. Springer Nature.
3. Zahir, I. L. M., Suthakaran, S., Ameer, M. L. F., Sindhuja, S., & Iyoob, A. L. (2025). Evaluating the Booster Grant’s Impact on YouthMappers’ Climate Activism and Climate Education in Sri Lanka. Youth, 5(2), 61. https://doi.org/10.3390/youth5020061
4. Zahir, I. L. M., Suthakaran, S., Zihan, Z. M., Iyoob, A. L., Thanujan, V., & Naksala, S. (2025). Developing the Volunteer Spatial Information Using OpenStreetMap for Countryside Sustainable Development in UVA Province, Sri Lanka. In Digital Technologies for Sustainability and Quality Control, pp. 273–303. IGI Global.
5. Tamekloe, M. K., Badmus, M., & Suthakaran, S. (2025). Reliable irrigation water access for smallholder farmers in Ghana: A systematic review. International Journal of Agriculture and Environmental Research, 11(4), 1146–1172.
6. Zahir, I. L. M., Suthakaran, S., Iyoob, A. L., Nuskiya, M. H. F., & Ameer, M. L. F. (2023). Application of geospatial technology for disaster risk reduction using machine learning algorithm and OpenStreetMap in Batticaloa District, Eastern Province, Sri Lanka. In Geospatial Technology for Disaster Risk Reduction, pp. 161–172. Springer.
7. Suthakaran, S., Zahir, I. L. M., Sampath, K. V. D., & Hameed, M. I. M. A. (2022). Accessing Open Street Map as a Source of Volunteer Geographic Information of Sri Lankan Administrative Systems: A Case Study in Selected Districts of Batticaloa, Vavuniya and Gampaha in Sri Lanka. South Eastern University International Arts Research Symposium, pp. 186–196.
8. Suthakarn, S., Jayakody, S., Subasinghe, S., Seneviratne, N., & Alahakoon, R. (2022). Mapping the Flood Risk Exposure Using Open-Source Geospatial Tools and Techniques: A Case of Gampaha Divisional Secretariat Division, Sri Lanka. Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection, 10(10), 18–31. https://doi.org/10.4236/gep.2022.1010002
9. Suthakaran, S., Withanage, A., Gunawardhane, M., & Gunatilake, J. (2020). A Flood Risk Assessment Based on an Open Street Map Application: A Case Study in Manmunai North Divisional Secretariat of Batticaloa, Sri Lanka. Bhumi, The Planning Research Journal, 7(2), 23–30. https://doi.org/10.4038/bhumi.v7i2.46
10. Saja, A. M. A., Lafir Sahid, S. M., Sutharshanan, M., & Suthakaran, S. (2021). Public Addressing System in Religious Places as Early Warning Dissemination Nodes—A Case Study in Sri Lanka. In Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Disaster Risks, pp. 751–763. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73003-1_48

• Flood risk, flood impacts and resilience of agricultural communities.
• Disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation.
• GIS, Remote Sensing and spatial analysis.
• OpenStreetMap, Volunteer Geographic Information and participatory/community mapping.
• Geospatial applications for sustainable development, agriculture and environmental management.
• Web GIS, spatial data infrastructure and open geospatial data.
• Geospatial technology and machine learning for disaster and urban/environmental analysis.

Dr. Suthakaran’s teaching and academic mentoring interests include:

• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and spatial analysis
• Agriculture Geography
• Remote Sensing and geospatial applications
• Disaster Management and Disaster Risk Reduction
• Environmental and human geography
• Open-source geospatial technologies and OpenStreetMap
• Community mapping, field data collection and participatory GIS

1. Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) Research Fellowship, 2023–2026
   Awarded a competitive JST-supported research fellowship at the University of Tsukuba, Japan, supporting doctoral research in Environmental Studies on “Assessing Flood Impacts on Rice Production and Farmers’ Resilience in Sri Lanka.”
2. Awarded to participate international conference and internship programme (2017 -2026)
   Awarded for participation in the international research, professional training, conferences and internship programmes across Japan, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Germany, Kenya, Nepal, Bangladesh and Malawi.
3. Booster Grant – International Grant, 2022–2023
   Awarded a US$25,000 YouthMappers Booster Grant to strengthen youth-led open mapping, geospatial capacity building, climate education, and community mapping initiatives in Sri Lanka.
4. HOT Microgrant Award, 2018
   Awarded a HOT Microgrant in recognition of contributions to OpenStreetMap and open geospatial data development.

1. Senior Lecturer, Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts and Culture, Eastern University, Sri Lanka (2026–Present).
2. Ph.D. Student / JST Research Fellow, University of Tsukuba, Japan (2023–2026).
3. Faculty Advisor, YouthMappers Chapter, Eastern University, Sri Lanka (2021 –Present)
4. Lecturer, Department of Geography, Faculty of Arts and Culture, Eastern University, Sri Lanka (2021–2023).
5. ST Consultant (GIS Expert), OpenDRI and OpenCities, World Bank, Sri Lanka (2013–2015 and 2016–2021).
6. UNV Humanitarian Information Management Specialist, UNDP / Disaster Management Centre of Malawi (2015).
7. GIS Specialist / Consultant, Disaster Management Project, UNDP and Disaster Management Centre, Sri Lanka (2012–2013).
8. GIS Specialist, Water Resources Management of Dry Zone Urban Water and Sanitation Project, RDC & NIRAS (2011–2012).
9. GIS Officer / GIS Assistant, UNOPS, UN ILO and UNDP assignments in Sri Lanka (2007–2011).

International Academic & Professional Engagement

1. 2026 – International Internship Programme, New Zealand.
2. 2024 –Country Coordinator for the 8th International Conference on Climate Change , Sri Lanka and Japan
3. 2024 – State of the Map (SOTM) Conference, Kenya.
4. 2024 – International Conference on Climate Change, Sri Lanka.
5. 2023 – Facilitator for Tsukuba- Latin America 2023 Online Exchange Event
6. 2023 – International Internship Programme, the Netherlands and Germany.
7. 2023 – International Conference on Climate Change, Sri Lanka.
8. 2019 – 2nd City Technical Exchange Workshop, Nepal.
9. 2019 – State of the Map Asia 2019, Bangladesh.
10. 2017 – State of the Map Asia 2017, Nepal.
11. 2017 – State of the Map 2017, Japan. 

Academic Training, Resource Person & Guest Lectures

1. 2018 – Guest Lecturer on Open-Source Geospatial Applications, Department of Geography, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka.
2. 2018 – Resource Person for Open-Source Geospatial Applications Training, Postgraduate Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences (PGIHS), University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka.
3. 2018 – Resource Person for Open-Source Geospatial Applications Training, Faculty of Engineering, South Eastern University of Sri Lanka.
4. 2018 – Guest Lecturer on Open-Source Geospatial Applications, Faculty of Applied Sciences, South Eastern University of Sri Lanka.
5. 2017–Resource Person for Open-Source Geospatial Applications Training, Postgraduate Institute of Science (PGIS), University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka.